A Cottage Grove woman was ordered to serve 18 months in prison for the 26-year theft of her missing father’s retirement benefits. Martha B. McRae, 63, appeared before U.S. District Court Judge Michael R. Hogan today and was also ordered to pay approximately $850,000 in restitution to the Social Security Administration (SSA), the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and the Defense Finance and Accounting Services (DFAS).

The OIG's Office of Audit reviewed a random sample of 50 survivors benefit transactions over $30,000 that SSA staff processed through the Manual Adjustment, Credit and Award Process (MADCAP) system. The sample was selected from a population of more than 1,000 MADCAP transactions SSA processed between Oct. 1, 2008 and Sept. 30, 2009.

Did you know that each Federal agency must issue an annual report on improper payments it made during the prior year? It is the Inspector General's responsibility to determine whether the agency's figures presented were accurate and if the agency complied with all of the requirements of the 2009 Executive Order on Reducing Improper Payments. This is SSA/OIG's evaluation of SSA's reported improper payments for 2010.

Federal prosecutors have filed a theft charge against a New Orleans man accused of collecting his mother's Social Security benefits for 26 years after her death. A court filing Thursday charges 65-year-old Bertrand R. Taylor with one count of theft of government funds. He faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted of the charge. Prosecutors say Taylor failed to inform the Social Security Administration that his mother died in June 1984. He allegedly pocketed more than $175,000 of her monthly benefits and spent the money on himself.

A Houston woman pled guilty to stealing $93,954 in Social Security benefits after her mother passed away. Theft of benefits is punishable by up to ten years imprisonment, three years of supervised release, a fine of $250,000, and restitution.